Take a Rooster to Eleuthera

 

TAKE A ROOSTER TO ELEUTHERA

The Travel Guides talk about Harbour Island, the tiny island off the bigger island of Eleuthera in the Bahamas.  They wax eloquent about the charming Loyalist cottages, luxurious resort hotels, high end and not so high end marinas, the stunning pink beaches and beyond words blue and turquoise waters.

But.  And this is an oversight I really don't understand.  They say NOTHING about the Roosters.  Not mentioning the Roosters is like not mentioning the Hibiscus, or the Bougainvillea, or the coral sand.  They are EVERYWHERE.  Their numbers are legion.

You and yours are having French Toast on the porch of Dunmore Deli; they trot regally under the table next to you.  You visit  the historic library shaded by giant Banyan trees; they stand guard.  While you watch the sunset over the Caribbean, they take their evening strolls.  You are enjoying a vacation read; they take a short cut across your porch.

The visual presence is indeed striking.  But the best part, the really BEST part is the surround sound!  Beginning at, I'm guessing, 3:00 AM, the lead Rooster (not sure what his actual title is) decides it's time to wake the troops.  Sounds a lot like a scream, so it does get your attention.  Ensuing is the All Island Alert System (AIAS), which continues until long after the sun rises.  One can lie there in the dark and imagine the relay beginning with the lead Rooster under your window, rippling out to Roosters on the far reaches of the island, then skipping across the sea to the shores of the next island, and so on.

Not to be forgotten are the wives and progeny of the Roosters.  They nest under overturned boats, under houses, in the thick of tropical plants.  They cluck cheerfully and scurry across the street, completely unconcerned with oncoming golf cart traffic.

So.  On our last day on Harbour Island, we came across a bumper sticker that pleads "Take a Rooster to Eleuthera", where apparently there is no overpopulation of poultry.  Likely due to the overpopulation of feral dogs.